Marcel Proust and Aunt Léonie's House

The great novelist Marcel Proust (1871-1922) made the little town of Illiers famous, describing it in fascinating detail under the name of Combray in his great work, A la Recherche du temps perdu (In Search of Lost Time).

As a boy, between the ages of six and nine, Proust came regularly to Illiers to stay with his aunt, whose house near the church has become a museum. In 1971, the literary name of Combray was added to the town's name to mark the centenary of Proust's birth!